Rachel Austin stretches the borders of experimental folk and grungy pop, reflecting the influences of her childhood home in the mountains of Virginia. She splits her time between Oakland, California and Belfast, Northern Ireland. With a voice that soars “like an earth angel” (Hot Press Magazine) and song writing that is “at once haunted and uplifting, yearning yet triumphant” (Daily Mirror), Austin adds junk tremolo guitar to create a sound compared to that of Jeff Buckley and Woven Hand. In her live performances, she weaves these vocals and songs together using simple voice and loop station arrangements and electronic material to make playful yet bold statements.

Rachel Austin writes songs that keeps forming, shifting, changing even in their stasis and form. Like, you know, every time you play a song you find something new in it - some new twang to the strings, new note to hit, some different aspect to the lyrics you never felt before, or a reaction from the audience you hadn't seen in the past.

The diverse list of artists with whom she has shared the stage and supported shows the variety and strength of her work: ​Florence + the Machine, Kronos Quartet, Fred Frith, Zeena Parkins, Duke Special, the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, Eleanor McEvoy, Devon Sproule, and Steve Forbert. She recorded her Age Trilogy (2010-2012) with Brian Beattie (producer: Okkervil River, Daniel Johnston),drummer Dony Wynn (drummer: Robert Palmer, Robert Plant), and Declan Legge (producer: Soak, Jealous of the Birds).

2019 sees Austin releasing her most ambitious project yet, Learning but Never Knowing, in the form of a limited edition book to accompany a 5-track EP and multiple film response. Learning but Never Knowing will go live through www.rachelaustinrachelaustin.com on March 8th.

"...Austin’s blissful voice soaring like an earth angel and a sense of liberation that recalls the late Tim Buckley. Glorious stuff." - Hot Press Magazine

"Austin’s voice, inspired by Tim Buckley and Regina Spektor (just two among a vast array of influences), is like an extra instrument that plays perfectly with the jazzy guitars, bass and drums. Really, though, it’s the writing that makes the songs work so well, without wanting to state the obvious, at once haunted and uplifting, yearning yet triumphant." - The Daily Mirror